The huge automobile market boosts the demand for automotive glass and other parts constantly. China's automotive glass market size reached 110 million square meters in 2015, with a CAGR of 7.9% compared with 2011. With the slowdown in the automobile market in the future, the automotive glass market will decelerate, at a CAGR of 5.9% in the next five years. By 2020, the market size is expected to reach 146 million square meters.

Chinese automotive glass market is mainly divided into the supporting market and the maintenance & replacement market. The supporting market shared about 88.3% of the whole automotive glass market in 2015, but the demand herein will decline in the future with the falling automobile output growth; the maintenance & replacement market occupied about 11.7%, while the demand herein will jump with China's rising car ownership and extended car service life.

In terms of products, the current mainstream automotive glass still centers on tempered glass and laminated glass. With higher requirements of drivers and passengers on safety and comfort as well as in-depth applications of optical, mechanical and other technologies in glass products, special function glass has been more and more popular in the market. For example, HUD glass has been assembled in BMW 7 Series, Lexus RX350, Audi, Citroen C6 and other high-end models; Fiat has applied liquid crystal dimmable glass made of PDLC flexible film to windshields and rear window glass; antennas, various electronic components, edge strips, heating wires and other accessories are increasingly integrated into glass to receive signals, provide reverse imaging, waterproof, dustproof and heating functions. In addition, thermal insulation and soundproof glass is used more widely as well.

As for competitive landscape, Chinese auto parts supporting market has entered into a relatively stable stage with high concentration after years of development. Fuyao Glass seized 63% market share exclusively in 2015 and has established relationship with most of major Chinese automakers to support a wide range of passenger cars and commercial vehicles. Asahi Glass (AGC) enjoyed 12% market share in 2015, serving passenger cars under Japanese brands. Saint-Gobain that mainly targets European passenger cars ranked third by market share. The followers -- Xinyi Glass, NSG, Shanghai Yaohua Pilkington Glass and other companies held the respective market share of less than 10%, mainly involved with passenger cars; other manufacturers mainly focus on low-grade commercial vehicle supporting and replacement markets.